Israel pounds Southern Gaza as officials say 'long war' expected for a year or more

(ZEROHEDGE) – All hell has broken loose on the first day of renewed fighting in Gaza post-truce. A UNICEF spokesperson said of the Friday bombardment, "This nightmare for people today just somehow got so much worse." Already, Palestinian sources have said that over 100 have been killed in the last hours of IDF bombing of the Strip. Israeli media is reporting that at least 50 rockets have been launched from Gaza onto southern Israel.

The aerial campaign has even expanded to include the southern half of the Strip, after throughout the early phase of the conflict Gazans were told to abandon their homes in the north and flee south for safety.

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The White House has said it supports Israel, and has blamed Hamas for the ceasefire's collapse. Israeli officials have explained that Hamas refused to release ten more women captives. Israel says "This violated the terms of the agreement, which specified that Hamas would first release all women and children being held in Gaza in exchange for Israel agreeing to a truce for as long as nine days."

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